Your Guardian Angel
by KatelynRoxUrSox
Summary: <html><head></head>Hotch realizes that something is up with Prentiss. He has to find out what's wrong, while juggling one of their toughest cases yet. When a plan goes wrong, Prentiss risks her life to save a family. Can Hotch save the woman he secretly loves in time?</html>
1. Chapter 1

**Your Guardian Angel- Hotch's POV**

**A/n: This whole story will be in Hotch's POV. I'm not gonna write it on the top of every chapter, so remember it's his POV! ;) In this story: episode: 100, happened. Haley Hotchner is dead and Jack Hotchner exists. In this story episode: 6x18 hasn't happened. Emily knows that something is up and that Ian Doyle might be out looking for her, but that's it. The team knows nothing, except that she is acting strangely. In this story: episode 6x02: JJ, did not happen. I think that's it. Enjoy!**

_Franklin D Roosevelt said: When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hold on._

Knock. Knock.

"Come in," I said not looking up from the paperwork I was finishing up.

"We have a case, Hotch. We're meeting in 5 minutes," JJ told me. I looked up. JJ looked very professional today. Her blonde hair was down, wavy, but her bang were straight. She had a light blue button down shirt and a black pencil skirt.

I nodded, "I'll be right there," I told her. She nodded and when she was about to leave she turned back around and asked, "Have you seen Emily?"

"What?" I asked not exactly sure what she meant.

"I don't think I've seen her yet and she's usually here by now. Do you know where she is?" JJ asked sounding slightly concerned.

"Uh, no I don't. Would you like me to call her?" I asked putting down my pen and reaching for the phone.

"Oh, no, no, finish what you're doing and then get to the briefing room. I'll give her a call," JJ told me and turned and walked down the hall. I sighed a sigh of relief. If JJ wasn't here, I probably would fall apart. I put the pages back into a file and then stood up from my chair and walked toward the briefing room.

"Did you get a hold of her?" I asked walking in. The other agents were already there.

"Her phone was off," JJ told me. That was odd. Her phone was always on. I looked at my watch.

"I'm sure she'll be here soon. Let's get started," I said sitting down next to Dave.

"Alright, Dylan Call, 8 years old was found dead in the woods by a hiker, near this small town in West Virginia," JJ said pulling up a map on the screen. She then flipped to a picture of a dead boy. Derek looked at the case file.

"Ligature marks… on his wrists, ankles, and…stomach?" He asked confused.

"The police said that the hiker found the boy tied to a tree," JJ explained. Then Emily walked in.

"I'm really sorry I'm late," She explained. She put her bag down and sat down.

"Late night?" Derek asked when he noticed the bags under eyes.

"Uh…" She ignored the question. She turned to me

"I'm really sorry," She said.

"It's fine. We just started," I said kindly. She looked like hell. "Go ahead JJ," I told her. JJ continued to talk. I saw Derek shoot Garcia a questioning look. Garcia shrugged. I stared at Emily. Her raven hair was straight like normal. She looked tired, but still beautiful. JJ finished talking. The profilers in the room were throwing out theories after JJ had showed us two more victims.

"Alright guys, wheels up in 30," I said. I looked at Emily.

"Are you all set?" I asked her.

"Yeah…of course," She said giving me a nervous laugh. Something was wrong I could tell. Emily went to her desk in the bull pen.

"JJ," I said quietly when it was just me and JJ alone.

"Yeah, Hotch?" JJ asked, probably knowing what I was going to say.

"Can you…uh, find out if anything is going on? YOu don't need to tell me what…just uh, let me know if it's something that she needs help with or if it's something that she can handle," I said trying to word what i was trying to say correctly.

"Hotch, if I ask her if she can handle it or not, you know what the answer will be," JJ said, referring to the fact that Emily was strong and compartmentalized very well.

"I know, but still. I just want to make sure she's okay," I said showing genuine concern for her.

"Uhm, sir…I'm not a profiler, so if I can pick this up, then the others probably can too, well, maybe not Spence, but…I think you're in love with her," JJ said smiling.

"JJ," I said very seriously all of a sudden, in a scolding sort of manner. Fraternization of coworkers was strictly prohibited. I of all people should know that.

"I'm sorry if that was…out of place?" JJ said, not exactly sorry. She said it in almost an annoyed/angry voice and she had the right. She had nothing to be sorry for. I was the one being out of place, getting mad at her for saying the truth. I didn't have anything else to say so she turned and walked away.

She rolled her eyes and sighed as she walked to the bull pen.

"The hell happened?" Derek asked

"Nothing," JJ said shortly.

"Oooh," Derek said laughing a little. He winked at Prentiss who didn't even respond. She sort of gave glare, though.

"Are all you ladies PMS today or something? Garcia spanked me, but I think that was more a sexual thing," Derek said laughing. Then JJ and Emily both walked by him and smacked him upside the head as they walked by.

"Ouch!" Derek said still laughing.

"Hey, don't be a bitch," Garcia said laughing at him.

"Only yours," He said winking. Then he walked to the elevator. Emily walked out the doors and JJ followed. I hoped that JJ wasn't too mad at me and that she would find out what was going on with Emily.


	2. Chapter 2

_**When I see you smile**_

_**tears run down my face**_

_**i can't replace**_

_**and now that i'm strong i have figured out**_

_**how this world turns cold and it breaks through my soul and i know**_

_**i'll find deep inside me i can be the one**_

"Emily," JJ asked quietly as they sat down on the jet. Emily was staring out the window, practically sleeping. She was so zoned out.

"Hey, Emily," JJ said a little louder getting her attention.

"Huh? Yeah, JJ?" Emily asked groggily.

"Are you okay?" JJ asked.

"What…" Emily asked, "Oh, uh, yeah I'm fine."

"Well, I don't believe you," JJ said.

"Well, mind your own business, " Emily said and then she got up and moved to the other end of the jet. JJ was a little hurt, but she wouldn't let it bother her. She knew Emily was only being this way because she was upset or hurt or something. She would help out Hotch. She knew the only reason he was being an ass was because he was worried about Emily, so she let that go, too. And as for Derek, well he was just being Derek. I walked onto the jet, followed by Derek, and Reid and Rossi. I looked at Rossi and motioned for him to sit next to Emily. She usually opened up to him more than anyone else, even JJ. She had told me once, that it was because she wasn't really close to her father, and she needed a father figure, and that's sometimes how she saw Dave. So he sat down next to her.

"Hey," He said quietly in his gruff, but kind voice.

"Hey," She said equally quiet. She rubbed her eyes and then sat up straight. She sighed.

"Do you need some time off?" He asked her.

"What?" Emily asked shocked.

"I'm sure Hotch wouldn't mind," Rossi offered quietly.

"No. I'm fine," She said her anger level raising a little.

"Alright, well…let me know if you do," He said kindly. She calmed down and looked into his eyes. She saw concern and he saw her weary, tired, but more importantly frightened, look.

"Thank you," She said genuinely. And stared into her eyes, and saw a tear trickle down her cheek. With his thumb, he brushed it off gently and she she quickly looked down at her files.

"Hey," He said gently lifting her chin so their eyes met. "Whatever's going on…when you need to talk, I'll be here. You know that," Dave said honestly. He gave her a quick hug and then they started talking about the case some more.

I sighed. I should have been the one consoling her, making her feel better. I should be the shoulder for her to cry on. Not the one to fear. If she only knew how I felt about her. If she only knew what I would do for her. I'd give anything to see her smile. To see her happy and safe. I'd give up my life.

I sat down across from her. I knew she hated the attention, but I needed to get my message across to her. I needed her to know she was okay. That she didn't need to hide from me. I loved her.

"Emily," I said gently. She had her hands folded on the table.

"Yeah Hotch?" She asked softly, tiredly. I put my hands on top of hers and held them. She looked confused, but accepted it. Maybe she liked it?

"Just know that we are all here for you. If you need to talk to anyone, do it. We'll listen. We care about you Emily," I said gently. My voice almost cracked when I said her name.

"Uhm, thanks Hotch," Emily said quietly. We landed a few minutes later. JJ walked out with Reid, followed by Derek.

"Coming?" Dave asked me.

"In a minute," I said nodding. Dave shrugged and walked off. Then it was me and Emily alone.

"I need to tell you something," I said. I walked close to her.

"Okay…" She said quietly. We were so close that our noses were almost touching.

"I need you to know this. I need you to hear this now. Something is going on with you and I know you don't want to tell us. But I need to tell you this," I said. Her warm breath on my face sent chills down my spine. Her smell, it was beautiful.

"Hotch…what is it?" She asked. It was strange that she wasn't nervous or uncomfortable at how close we were. Maybe she felt the same way I did. There was only one way to find out.

"Emily…I love you," I said.


	3. Chapter 3

**I will never let you fall**

**I'll stand up with you forever**

**I'll be there for you through it all**

**Even if saving you sends me to heaven**

**It's okay**

"Hotch?" Emily asked after a moment of silence. I didn't respond.

"Hotch!" Emily said a little louder catching my attention.

"What?" I asked alarmed. Did I really just tell her I loved her?

"You said you had something to tell me?" She asked concerned at how spaced out I was. I looked where I was sitting. A few feet away from her on the other couch. I sighed in relief. I had not been awkwardly close to her. And telling her I loved her, well that was obviously just in my head. That was so strange.

"Oh, uh, yes. if…ah you feel like you need to take a break…like you need to take your self off the case-" I began, even though that wasn't what I really wanted to say. However, she cut me off.

"Hotch," She laughed, "I'm fine. I'm not gonna take my self off the case," She said smiling. I loved her smile._ Her beautiful teeth and her seductive red lips…_I shuddered. I couldn't think this way about my colleague…but it was SO hard not too.

"Oh, um…well, then," I was at a loss for words. She didn't seem to notice.

"But, um thanks for the concern," She said smiling sweetly. She grabbed her bag and walked off the jet. I wiped my forehead…had she noticed that bead or two of sweat dripping. _C'mon Hotchner get a grip. She's a woman, and you're a grown man. It's not like your twelve again with a cute little crush,_ part of me said. But the other part said….well it said things that were just not right to think about your colleague, but damn were they the truth. I grabbed my bag and followed behind.

_Later_

"JJ, put get this profile to the media, now!" I said. I was stressed. This son of a bitch was out killing little boys, molesting them, and then tied them to a tree. We didn't even know that much about him. Although we didn't exactly say this out loud, we were really no closer to catching then when we started, except that had a little better of a geographical profile. But that was about a 100 mile radius of forests and back roads.

"Got it, Hotch," JJ said nodding to me and walked out the door. Prentiss and Morgan were at the first dump site, when I got a text from Morgan.

**Derek Morgan: Hotch, something's up with Prentiss. Some 1 keeps calling her. U kno anything about this?**

** Me: I don't. Keep an eye out. I'll speak with her when you guys get back.**

** Derek: We'll be back in 10.**

**I **cringed at the thought of something bad happening with Emily. A few minutes later JJ was back. She looked at me. I was ready to tear my hair out.

_ "_Where's Reid?" I asked. I was short and stressed.

"In the other room working on compressing the geographical profile," JJ answered.

"And Dave?" I asked quickly.

"With him…" JJ said, surprised that I didn't know where my agents were.

"Hotch…" JJ began.

"JJ, don't start with me now. We need to focus on this case," I said very seriously and cross.

"No Hotch," JJ said raising her voice, which she never did.

"Excuse me?" I asked my voice loud and angry. I was extremely surprised. I was her superior. I was not a power skewed leader, but I was her _boss! _

"Hotch! Are you listening to yourself? You're stressed about this case, you're stressed about Emily, you're stressed about yourself! You just need to CHILL OUT!" JJ yelled. There was silence. I was speechless. I didn't know what to say. I looked at her. I knew my face showed anger, but when I saw her face which had gone from angry to desperate and sad, I apologized.

"JJ," I began. I had made a stupid mistake.

"I'm gonna go check on Spence and Rossi. Deal with this yourself," She said quietly and walked out of the room. I sunk my head into my hands and sighed loudly. Then Derek and Emily walked in.

"What's wrong with her?" Derek asked pointing out the door, referring to JJ. I shook my head giving him the 'not right now' look. Derek cringed.

"What did you find?" I asked.

"Hotch!" Reid called running in. Rossi and JJ quickly followed.

"What?" I asked.

"We gotten address. Garcia found it!" JJ said.

"Derek, you and Prentiss go. Do you have an address?" I asked.

"Yeah, right here," JJ said holding a paper.

"Morgan, call if you need back up," I advised.

"Got it," Derek said hurrying out. Prentiss followed.

"Emily," I said.

"Yeah, Hotch?" There was a pause.

"Be careful," I said kindly.

"Ok," She said. Little did I know that what she was hiding from us could affect how she caught an unsub.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/n: Just a quickie: Won't be able to write until Wednesday so enjoy this chappieter ! (like that word: chappieter…hmm…) :)I will write tons on Wed. to make up for it! This is a SUPER short chapter and if i can i will add more at the airport, but i gotta go soon!**

**xxx**

**Seaon's are changing and waves are crashing**

**and stars are falling all for us**

**Days grow longer and nights grow shorter**

**I can show you l'll be the one.**

**I **sat quietly reading what Reid had scribbled down trying to decipher a code the unsub had left.

"Hotch.." JJ began quietly.

"JJ, Listen. I'm-" I tried, but she cut me off.

"No. Hotch, never mind. It's over. I just want you to remember that Emily's safe with Derek. You gotta focus," JJ reminded me.

"I know. I'm just…I've only felt this way one other time…it's…" I sighed thinking of Haley. My first true love. I had hurt her…and then gotten her killed. That hurt as it was. But now I was falling in love with Emily. And once you fall in love you're bound to get hurt.

I realized I had been zoning out for at least ten minutes. I wondered if Morgan and Emily had arrived.

**on the way to potential unsub's house**

Ring. Ring.

"Prentiss," Emily answered her phone.

"Emily. It's Garcia," Penelope said.

"What's up?" Prentiss asked, assuming that she had some new info.

"Where are you?" She asked.

"On the way to the house," Prentiss began, "Why?"

"What's wrong?" Derek asked and Emily shrugged and gave him the hold on look.

"I need to ask you something…" Garcia confessed.

"Garcia…what's wrong?" Emily asked.

"You've been acting really strangely lately…are you pregnant? Is there some new guy? Or is it something else…? Cuz if it's something else I'm gonna be worried..." Garcia asked.

"Garcia. We're almost there. I have to go," Emily said abruptly and hung looked at her with a confused look.

"What was that all about?" He asked.

"Nothing," Emily said shaking her head.

Buzz.

Silence.

Buzz.

Silence.

Buzz.

"Emily?"

Silence.

Buzz.

"Yeah, Derek?"

Buzz.

"You gonna answer your phone?"

Silence.

Silence.

"It's not important…" Emily answered.

"Are you sure? You didn't even check who it was. What if it was Hotch? Or Garcia" Derek asked. Emily picked up her phone.

"It wasn't. Those were texts, by the way…"Emily said as if that mattered, but what Derek didn't know, was that they did. Emily knew she had something coming. But even she didn't know the extent of her suffering.

They pulled up outside the house.

"Who are they from?" Derek blurted out, "Wait, sorry, none of my business.

"Ready?" Emily asked. Derek nodded and they got out of the car and walked up to the front door. Emily knocked loudly. No response. Emily knocked again. Nothing.

"Walter Cunningham?" Derek yelled. No response, "FBI!" He announced. Still nothing.

"Ready?" Derek asked and Emily nodded. Derek kicked open the door. We jogged in. Emily went into the kitchen, "Clear!" Derek went into the living room, "Clear!" Emily walked down the hall.

"Clear!" Derek yelled clearing the closets and other doors. Then he realized that Emily hadn't called back.

"Emily?" He called. Nothing.

"EMILY!" He yelled louder. Still nothing. He ran down the hall with his gun up. He looked into a room. _Wham_. "Son of bitch!" Derek yelled as he dropped his gun and fell to the ground. Glass flew every where. His vision was blurry, but what he saw was bad. He had been hit with a lamp. There was glass and blood all over. He looked at the man. He was holding Emily tightly with one hand and had Derek's gun to her head with the other hand.

"Let me go you bastard," Emily said forcefully. The man pushed the gun harder into her face.

"Aww fuck," Emily clenched her teeth. She would not give him the satisfaction of hearing her cry out in pain. Derek noticed the man stroking Emily's face. He wasn't watching Derek. It made him sick. He slowly and quietly pulled out his phone and hit send. It was dialing hotch.

"Hello?" He heard hootch's voice.

"Hotch get here with backup," Derek said as quietly as he could.

"You should hang up," The unsub said not looking at Derek, "I will shoot her. She's a pretty thing isn't she?" The ubsub said unbuttoning Emily's blouse.

"Go to hell," Derek muttered. The unsub kicked him in the gut. He cringed and hoped Hotch would get there in time.


	5. Chapter 5

**a/n: Strong 'f' word usage. Be warned! p.s: Enjoy3 **

**I will never let you fall**

**I'll stand up with you forever**

**I'll be there for you through it all**

**Even if saving you sends me to heaven**

Emily looked out the window. Hotch was not there yet. The unsub pushed the gun in her head hard. Emily groaned quietly to herself. The unsub was giving Derek a dirty, nasty glare. This was her chance. Emily kicked her heel hard into his groin causing him to double over in pain. Emily broke free of his hold and stumbled over to Derek. The unsub didn't drop the gun, however. Just as he fired a shot for Emily's head, Derek pushed her out of the way. Using the momentum from Derek's push, Emily tackled the unsub.

"Emily!" Derek yelled angrily. Emily knocked the gun out of the unsub's hand and pinned him to the ground.

"FBI!" Rossi yelled. He ran in and I followed. We had our guns up.

"Hotch, cuffs!" Emily called. I quickly gave her my cuffs. She roughly grabbed the unsub's hands and cuffed them. Before she stood him up she yelled into his face, "WHERE IS MICHAEL?" Referring to the little boy he had taken. He didn't respond.

"WHERE IS HE?" Emily yelled again. He didn't answer. She punched him the face.

"I'm going to ask you one more time and then I'm going to shoot you. Where is Michael?" She yelled, whispering the shooting part so only they could hear. There was silence. I heard crying.

"Dave, JJ!" I yelled to Rossi and JJ, who ran upstairs. Two police men came in. They had followed us here. Emily stood the unsub up and pushed him toward the cops. JJ walked down stairs carrying a little crying boy.

"It's okay, honey, we're gonna get you to your mom and dad," JJ whispered in his ear. She carried him outside to a police car. SHe pulled out her phone and called the parents. Rossi followed her out.

"Bet you would have been a good fuck," The unsub said to Emily laughing as the police men pushed him out to their car. What the unsub said made me angry, but I controlled myself and walked over to Emily.

"Hey," I said gently. She was brushing off some dirt from her pants.

"Hey," She said normally, as if none of that had happened.

"Emily, are you all right?" I asked softly. I lifted my hand gingerly towards her face. _Hotchner what the hell are you doing?_ I thought to myself. _I'm touching the woman I love! _The other part of me thought. _Well…touching is a relative term. _I thought as I carefully wiped blood from the small cut on Emily's face. I let my hand rest on her face, but it couldn't have been for more than a fraction of a second. Just as I was about to pull my hand away, Emily placed hers on top of mine. She barely smiled, but it was a smile none the less. I turned to see medics helping Derek. Emily walked to him.

"What the hell?" She asked angrily.

"Emily! He had a gun!" Derek yelled.

"I got him, didn't I?" She said raising her voice.

"But what if you hadn't!" He yelled, "Huh? Then what?" He yelled. Then the medic helped him up, "Maybe your head is a little messed up from all those calls and texts you've been getting, but what ever the hell it is, it shouldn't affect what's going on right here on the job!" He yelled.

"Screw you!" She yelled and stormed out before the medics could check her out.

"Emily!" I called to her, but she ignored me. She never acted unprofessionally. I knew something was up. I turned to Derek angrily.

"What the _hell_ is going on?" I asked in a quieter but still angry voice.

"He had a gun to her head, ready to pull the trigger, and she risked her life in a way an agent is _never_ suppose to!" Derek said, still angry.

"I'm her boss! Not you! I will address her if there is inappropriate action as I need to, but right now the only one I need to address is you!" I said irritated.

"Bull shit, Hotch! You won't call her out on _anything _ anymore! It's like…it's like…it's like your in love with her or something! Your focus has been on her! Her, her, her! You gave JJ shit today for nothing! She has done nothing but help you out, and you yelled at her! Twice, because you can't admit this to your self! Man, you need to straighten things out now!" Derek yelled. He ripped away from the medics grip and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

"MORGAN!" I yelled. I was so pissed, but he was even more pissed off.

"Hotch I am _done_ arguing with you. This case is over and I'm out of here!" Derek yelled at me. He walked to the SUV that he and Emily had driven in. She was sitting in the front seat. She got out of the car and met Derek half way. Before he could say anything, she spoke.

"I'm sorry. You're right. I should have never taken that risk. And you're right. The texts, the calls…they've been too much. I'm stressed, Hotch has been weird and I just need to go home and think things through," She explained.

"Emily…I'm sorry I yelled at you. That was so unprofessional of me…especially in there in front of them. I hope I didn't embarrass you. You didn't deserve that. What ever's going on…" He said pointing to the phone, "It's obviously not good, and I just…I didn't want you getting hurt. I couldn't let you risk your life like that," Derek explained, "And Hotch…well, I let him explain that to you later…but he's being an ass and I don't wanna deal with him right now. Not after I just yelled at him. We both need to cool down….Do you wanna go somewhere and chill out? I'll text JJ and tell her that we'll drive back to Quantico…unless you want to go back with Hotch?" Derek said nicely.

"Driving…sounds good," Emily agreed. Derek started up the car and they drove away. He quickly sent JJ a text:

**Derek: Emily and I are gonna drive back to Quantico**

**JJ: Ok. I'll tell Hotch. Tell Emily to call me later.**

** Derek: Will do. Thanks.**

"JJ wants you to call her later," Derek said relaying the message.

"I will," Emily said looking out her window. She looked at her phone and at all the messages.

**Unknown: I'll see you soon**

** Unknown: I'm close.**

** Unknown: I'm here.**

** Unknown: Tough case?**

** Unknown: I know where you are.**

** Unknown: I know when you'll be back. **

** Unknown: Not answering, huh?**

** Unknown: It says unknown, doesn't it? But you know who it is.**

** Unknown: I'm looking forward to seeing you again very soon.**

Emily stopped reading. There were more, but she couldn't take it. Even though the texts said unknown, the person was right, she knew who exactly they were from, and she was scared.


	6. Chapter 6

**a/n: Thanks for the support! P.S i love reviews;) and also the lyrics below kind look like a stick figure… it's cute3 Enjoy**

**Cause your my**

**true love, my whole heart**

**Please don't throw that away**

**Cause I am here**

**for you**

**Please don't walk away **

**and**

**please tell me you'll stay**

We got back to the BAU quite late. JJ went to her office, I went to mine, and Rossi and Reid went straight home. I hadn't received any calls or texts from Derek or Emily, so I figured they were still pretty pissed at me or each other.

I sat at my desk and tried to write a case report, but I couldn't focus. Something had come over me the past few days and I had just been awful to my team. I loved Emily. I didn't know why that was making me freak out. My phone rang.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hotch- it's Derek," He said.

"Derek, listen-" I began.

"No, Hotch. It was my bad, alright. I was a little pissed at Prentiss, a little more pissed at you, and completely pissed at myself…for letting us get into that situation," Derek explained.

"It's alright. You're okay…Emily's okay," I said.

"And what I said about you and Emily…that was completely out of place," He explained.

"Wait, is Emily with you?" I asked.

"No, she had me drop her off at a restaurant about an hour ago," Derek told me.

"What restaurant?" I asked concerned.

"The cafe by her place. She was waiting for her friend who was gonna meet her there. Her friend was flying in to meet her there," Derek explained.

"But she's okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, she's physically alright, but…" His voice trailed away.

"What?" I asked nervously.

"Well she's been getting tons and tons of texts and calls that she's been ignoring and i'm thinking there from the same person and I'm thinking that they aren't nice. I think they're freaking her out, " Derek explained.

"Can you find out who they're from? Or maybe JJ?" I asked.

"Yeah i"ll do my best…maybe tell JJ? Or I can?" Derek asked.

"Uh, yeah, I will. I need to patch things up with her, too, " I said.

"Alright Hotch. Do what you have to do…maybe give Emily a call later," Derek suggested.

"Alright, thanks, Derek," I said and hung up.

When I had finally finished writing the report, I looked at my watch. 12:30 am. I needed to go home. I wanted to be there when my son woke up. I put my things in my bag and headed towards the door. I looked to see a light on in JJ's office. I put my bag down and walked to her office.

_Knock. Knock._

"Come in," JJ said, not looking up from the file.

"JJ," I said opening the door.

"Hotch?" She asked, slightly confused, "Why are you here so late?"

"Case report," I said holding up the file, "What about you?"

"_New_ cases," She said pointing to a stack of files a mile high behind her.

"It's really late, JJ, you should head home," I suggested.

"I know…I know…I just need some alone time, I guess?" She said unsure.

"Why? What's going on?" I asked, hoping this wasn't my fault, too.

"Hotch, did you need something from me?" JJ asked changing the subject.

"Just some help, but if you're busy-" I began.

"No…it's fine. Do you want to sit down?" She asked.

"You sure?" I asked.

"Yeah it's fine." I shut the door and sat down in the chair in front of her office.

"So what's going on?" JJ asked.

"JJ…can I ask you…or tell you this…as…a friend? And not as your boss?" I asked awkwardly.

"Hotch…? What's wrong?" JJ asked concerned.

"It's Emily.." I began.

"Aw jesus, is she hurt? She and Derek were driving back together, they were gonna get some food or something and hang out and then head home-" I cut JJ off.

"No, she's not hurt…It's just…She's been getting some texts and I don't think they're good…neither does Morgan. Can you just maybe…talk to her?" I asked.

"Yeah sure Hotch, no problem," She said kindly.

"And JJ, I'm so sorry for being an ass hole. I don't know why I acted like that," I explained.

"Hotch, it's okay, but you need to tell Emily how you feel…before it's too late," JJ said quietly. She was right.

"Thanks, JJ," I said smiling.

"No problem, now get home to Jack," She said smiling back.

"And you to Will and Henry," I said and walked out of her office.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n: Thanks for all the reviews and support! Sorry it took so long to get a chapter up, but I've been sick for a few days…but I'll try to upload a few to make up for it! Also, now this story is going to start to go towards the Prentiss/Doyle part. What people say will not be exactly what they said in the show, but the idea will be the same. So yeah. Enjoy3**

**Use me as you will**

**Pull my strings just for a thrill**

**Yeah I know I'll be okay**

**Though My skies are turning gray**

_"Lauren Reynolds. It's been too long," A man said sitting down across from Emily._

_ "Not long enough," Emily scoffed, "Ian. What brings you to DC?" _

_ "You're smarter than this. You know why I'm here," The man said._

_ "Yeah, but I really want you to tell me," Emily said sarcastically._

_ "Well, Lauren, or…what do you go by these days…Emily? Agent Prentiss?" He began. Emily didn't respond, so he continued, "Emily, I'm here, because of you. Rather, I'm here for you. I'm here to end you." _

_Meanwhile..._

"Daddy! Daddy!" Jack called to me running towards me with open arms.

"Jack! What are you doing up so late, buddy?" I said laughing and picking up my son. I kissed him on his forehead.

"Waitin for you!" He exclaimed.

"For me?" I said laughing, "Head to bed, buddy, I'll be there to tuck you in in a sec, Okay?" I told him.

"Okay! Bye Carolyn!" He turned waving to his babysitter.

"Bye, Jack," She said softly, smiling. He squealed and ran off to his bed. I turned to Carolyn.

"Thanks for staying so late tonight. I didn't know I'd be this late," I told her.

"It's no problem, Agent Hotchner," Carolyn said. She had only been babysitting Jack for two weeks now, and we were still on the 'Agent Hotchner' basis.

"Aaron's fine, Carolyn," I told her, smiling, pulling out the money I owed her for staying late.

"Alright, and you don't have to pay me extra for watching him. It was only a few more hours. Jack's a sweet kid," Carolyn told me.

"No, no, take it," I told her handing her the money.

"Thank you, Aaron," She said smiling. I walked her to the door and she left. She climbed into her car and drove away. THen i shut and locked the door and set the alarm. I was so much more cautious after what happened with Foyet. I walked to Jack's room.

"Alright, buddy, time for bed!" I said smiling.

"Night, daddy!" He said opening his arms.

"C'mere!" I said hugging him tightly.

"Love you, daddy," He said hugging me.

"Love you too, big guy," I said hugging back. Then my phone rang.

"Is that Emily?" Jack exclaimed. He loved Emily.

"Jack, why would it be," I began, pulling out my phone, "Oh," I said after I looked at the screen, "It is, buddy. I have to answer this, so you go to sleep alright? I'll come back in a minute," I told him.

"Okay, daddy, say hi to Emily for me!" He said and rolled over into his covers. I walked out of his room.

"Hello?" I said.

_"Hotch?" Emily asked quietly. Her voice sounded hoarse. Scared, almost._

"Prentiss? Are you alright?" I asked worriedly.

_ "Uh, yeah, Hotch, I'm okay. I just wanted to let you know that I might be a little late tomorrow…I have to meet a friend," Emily said._

"A friend? About what?" I asked. I needed to know why she would be late.

_ "Uh, she's having some trouble with her fiance… and she just needs to talk to me about something," Emily explained._

"What time, about, do you think you'll be in by?" I asked.

_"Uh…" She began. She was usually there by 8am at the latest. _

"Prentiss?" I asked.

_"Right, sorry Hotch. 9:30, latest," SHe said._

"Emily? Is something going on? Do you need to take some time off?" I asked, coming off a little more crossly than i had intended.

_"No. No Hotch. I'll be in. Thanks," She said changing the tone of her voice to a more aggressive tone. I still thought it was extremely sexy. _

"Of course. And Emily," I began, surprised that I had said Emily, instead of Prentiss.

_"Yeah Hotch?" She asked me._

"I know something is going on. Derek's worried, JJ's worried, and I'm worried. I really am. As much as want to believe you when you say you're fine and you're all set, I can't. So whatever you're doing tomorrow morning, and whatever you did tonight, when Derek dropped you off," I began.

_"Hotch," Emily tried to cut in._

"No, listen to me, Emily," I told her, "Be careful. I…we care about your safety," I said. _Damn._ I thought. _I care about your safety? Aaron, tell her you love her._

_ "Uh, thanks Hotch," Emily said._

"Tomorrow evening, if we don't have a case, we need to talk…I need to talk to you… out of the office," I said awkwardly.

_"Aaron Hotchner…are you asking me out?" Emily said slyly._

"Emily, this is really important," I told her. It was.

_"Hotch, I don't know…I have," She began._

"Just think about it. It's really important that we talk," I said.

_"Alright Hotch. Good night," Emily said._

"Good night, Emily," I said, and hung up. I walked into Jack's room again. I pulled the covers over him and kissed his forehead. He was fast asleep.

"Good night, buddy," I whispered and I went into my room and shut the door.


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n: I'm sort of changing the story up a little, that is, it won't be exactly like valhalla (6x17) and lauren (6x18) but the same idea. Thanks for all reviews! I loveeee them reviews! *winkwink*coughcough*nudgenudge* ;) enjoi**

**I will never let you fall**

**I'll stand up with you forever**

**I'll be there for you through it all**

**even if saving you sends me to heaven**

"He's here," Emily said.

"How do you know?" Clyde asked.

"I sat next to him yesterday," Emily said.

"Why didn't he kill you?" Tsia asked.

"A better question- why the bloody hell didn't you kill him!" Clyde explained.

"I figured he had other men there. They would have shot me," Emily said. Clyde groaned in frustration. Emily rolled her eyes and looked at her watch.

"What? Do you have something more important then your life you need to attend to?" Clyde asked frustrated.

"Yeah," Emily said standing up, "My job," She said and waved goodbye to Tsia.

"Stay safe, Emily," Tsia said chuckling and waving back.

"Please," Clyde added sighing with frustration. Emily looked both ways before getting up and leaving.

Emily rushed through the doors at 9:29am. She hurried over to the bull pen where her team members were packing up some files.

"Nice of you to show up," Derek said, nastily. Emily was about to respond, but then chose not to. She instead sighed and walked away towards JJ's office.

"You know," Garcia said to Derek, "I love you, but sometimes you're an ass hole," She muttered and hurried off after Emily. Derek gave the "what the hell did I do?" look. Reid walked away as well leaving Derek alone to think.

Emily knocked on JJ's door.

"Come in," JJ said, and Emily opened the door.

"Hey," She said putting down the papers she was looking at and giving Emily a smile.

"Hi," Emily said quietly, reciprocating a smaller smile.

"You ok?" JJ asked concerned.

"Yeah…I just…one of those weeks I guess," Emily said shrugging it off. Time to compartmentalize. All the scary Doyle thoughts go to the back, all the case thoughts, to the front.

"I know what you mean," JJ nodded understandingly. _No. You don't, _Emily thought to herself.

"Yeah…" Emily said quietly, her voice trailing away.

"Here sit and I'll go over the case with you," JJ offered.

"Sure…thanks. Sorry I'm late. I did talk to Hotch about it, though. Maybe he didn't tell everyone?" Emily asked.

"No, he actually isn't even here. He told me to begin and to have everyone meet him at the scene when we were done. So Derek, Rossi and Reid are heading there now, Garcia and I will stay here, and as soon as we're done, you can head there, too," JJ explained.

"Oh..okay," Emily said quietly. JJ pulled out some pictures.

"We have a group of unsubs killing families. At first we thought they were murder-suicides, but then we found a connection between the victims," JJ explained.

"Already?" Emily asked.

"This is a bad one. We started really early and have been working all morning," JJ explained.

"Which explains why Morgan was pissed that I was late," Emily said sighing.

"Aw, I'm sorry…he was worried when you didn't show up this morning. He freaked out, actually," JJ said.

"He did…?" Emily asked.

"Yeah…we all kind of did, actually. We're worried about you Emily. You aren't acting normal…Reid mentioned that you were biting your nails again…you only do that when you're stressed," JJ added.

"I just haven't been sleeping too well. Don't worry about it. Seriously," Emily said.

"Alright…" JJ said unsure. They finished reviewing the case. When they were done with the case, Emily knew, that what these vics all had in common was that they were part of the larger interpol group profiling Ian Doyle, the man out to kill Emily. Emily shuddered, because she knew, that would mean, she was last on the list. Emily left.

Ring. Ring.

"Hotchner," I answered.

_ "Yeah Hotch it's Emily," Emily said._

"We're at the second vic's house," I said.

_"Ok, I'll be right there," Emily said and hung up._

"Derek, when Emily gets here, I want you two to go to the latests vic's house," I said.

"She on her way?" Derek asked, still annoyed.

"Yes. You know, I gave her permission to be late today. She had a personal matter to take care of," I said.

"Of course you did. And did it have anything to do with all those calls and texts?" He asked.

"No…well, I don't think so," I said.

"Right. Got it," Derek said annoyed. Then Emily pulled in, in a BAU suv. She climbed out and walked over.

"You and Morgan are going to the latest vic's house," I said. Emily nodded and walked toward the car. Derek followed. Emily climbed in the drivers seat and Derek got in the passengers seat.

"Hey," Derek said.

"Hi," Emily said, pulling out of the driveway.

"Sorry I was mad this morning," Derek said.

"It's fine," Emily said.

"Those texts stop yet?" He asked.

"Yeah," Emily lied.

"Good," Derek said. There was silence. Followed by more silence.

"We're here," Emily said. She got out of the car.

"Wait," She said, "I heard something," She said. Then shots fired.

"Damit!' She hissed and got down behind the car. Derek quickly ran around to her side too. They had their guns out. More shots. Emily went around the front of the car and fired back. The men were in black outfits, with white masks. There was a getaway car and the men piled in, while shooting and started driving away. Emily shot one man in the leg as he was trying to climb in.

"C'mon!" Emily yelled as they chased after the car, avoiding the gun fire.

"Wait!" The man yelled as he tried to stand. Instead, the man in the van shot his wrist, and then shot him in the chest. Then he drove away.

"Son of a bitch," Derek muttered. They ran toward the man, lying dead on the ground. Derek took his pulse. Dead.

"They shot his wrist," Emily said.

"There's the end of a tattoo…that means they knew we would be able to ID them from it…" Derek said. Emily gulped. She was scared, but she kept it to herself.

"Hotch," Derek said into his phone, "Get over here. We were just shot at and we have one of the men here dead. We need Reid. We need him to ID a tattoo for us," Derek said. I gathered my team together and we drove over to Derek and Emily.

**A 3 hours later**

Emily and Derek were at the scene of another murder. A woman named Tsia Mosley, who, although i didn't know at the time, was Emily's friend. Emily had told her to go, and it had gotten her killed. Emily and Derek went to the scene and when Emily saw the body she threw up outside. Derek took her to her home so she could change, and while she was there, she flushed a necklace. A very important necklace.

__Emily dropped her bag on her desk. Reid jumped.

"Woah, sorry," Emily apologized.

"No, no…I'm fine. Just concentrating," Reid lied.

"You jumped…" Emily pointed out.

"I uh…I've just been getting these really intense headaches lately," Reid admitted.

"Does anyone know?" Emily asked.

"No. They would just worry and treat me like a baby. I mean you would worry too, but," Reid explained.

"Yeah…I…won't tell anyone," Emily promised.

"I know," Reid said smiling slightly, "I got that tattoo. It's a Gaelic clover," Reid explained.

"Oh," Emily cringed. Now she was really scared. I uh…have to go," Emily said. She walked into the bathroom. She dialed her phone, but then Garcia walked in. She quickly hung up.

"You okay?" Garcia asked.

"Yeah…fine…just tired…haven't been getting too much sleep," Emily explained.

"How come?" Garcia asked.

"I uh…I've been having this recurring dream…a little girl is at the top of a hill and I try to run up the hill and save her, because I know what dangers are out there for someone who only sees the good in the world…like you," Emily said.

"Oh, honey," Garcia began.

"You always find a way to make me smile even when I'm having my worst days. I don't think i've ever thanked you for that," Emily said, wiping a tear from her eye. Garcia did the same . They stared at each other with smiles and watering eyes until JJ walked in to see them crying.

"Hotch…uh, wants you. They're giving the profile of a man named Ian Doyle," JJ said. Emily's eyes widened.

"Okay," Garcia said and walked out, followed by Emily slowly. They gathered in the room as Hotch, Rossi and Morgan started giving the profile to all sorts of different law enforcement officers.

Emily looked around the room. She looked at Rossi, at Reid, at JJ, at Garcia, at Derek, and at me. Memorizing all of our faces. She sighed, and slowly started backing up towards the door. She wiped a tear from her eye and slipped out the doors, without anyone seeing her.

It was time to get Doyle, because she didn't have any family she was close to. He was killing families. This meant he would kill her team. She couldn't let that happen. It was time to end him.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey guys. I have to finish this up soon! But it won't be a rushed ending, promise. It'll be good, but I'M gonna skip the part of them profiling Emily and Doyle and what not. I'm going to sort of give an explanation and then skip to where Emily is with Doyle. Okay? Love you all! Thanks for the support!**

**I will never let you fall**

**I'll stand up with you forever**

**I'll be there for you through it all**

**even if saving you sends me to heaven**

I finished delivering the profile with the team. I waved my hand for the team to all come to me.

"Hotch, where's Emily?" Derek asked.

"Emily?" My heart raced. Where was she. We looked around.

"I didn't see her," JJ said shaking her head when I looked at her.

"Call her," Reid suggested. So I did. Then we heard ringing coming from her desk.

"Shit," Derek muttered. We rushed to her desk and opened the drawer. There was her phone, badge and gun.

"She's gone," Reid murmured, "But why would she run? "

"We knew she was personally involved to some level," I began, "What if…" My voice trailed away because I couldn't say.

"But we're her family," Reid protested.

"Doyle's killing families. She's not married and she's not close to any family. She ran to protect us!" Rossi exclaimed.

"She's taking the fight to him. She's not gonna wait," I said.

"Son of a bitch," Derek said. He punched his fist into the wall and walked away.

That was it. We had to profile Emily. We had to profile Doyle. We had to save her.

**A few hours later:**

Emily picked up her phone. There was a missed call from Garcia.

_"Emily," _The message said, _"I don't know if you're gonna get this. I have no idea if you use this phone or not, but I had it listed so I thought I'd try…Come home. Please," _Garcia begged between sobs, _"We miss you and then I think about how scared you must be…out there alone…but you're not alone. We're coming to get you! If you won't come…then stay safe! Stay alive. We're coming," _The line beeped, signaling the end of the message. Emily cried. Then she saw Doyle's men. And then she saw Doyle. She wiped the tears and then set out to kill. It was time.

**More hours later:**

I was pacing. Thinking. Angry. Sad. Scared for Emily.

"Hotch," JJ said gently.

"What?" I said. I was stressed.

"Calm down. We're all scared for her. But we need your head here. Please," JJ begged.

"I never told her I loved her. I never told her I cared about her. I've just been stressing her out and not helping. And now she's gone. What if we can't-" I was never one to doubt my team's ability.

"Stop," JJ cut me off, "We will," She said firmly. She patted my shoulder and walked away. I sat thinking about poor Emily. The one i loved more than life itself.

**Meanwhile:**

"You still have two tattoos?" Doyle asked rudely.

"I do," Emily said clenching her teeth. Doyle stood behind her and began unbuttoning her blouse. Emily fought backed but he pulled her hair roughly. She stopped fighting. He unbuttoned it so her chest and bra were showing. He smiled, stroking her breast, remembering the good times.

"You know what would be a nice addition to your collection?" He asked.

"You know, two is enough," Emily said laughing nervously, "Enough ink for me."

"Who said anything about ink? The north Koreans don't have enough money for ink. They brand themselves," He said getting a glimmer in his eye. He would get off on her pain.

"You don't have to do this," Emily said.

"I do…I do," Doyle said and took the hot rod to her chest. She screamed in pain loudly.

"We got him!" Derek said.

"JJ, call SWAT, Derek you'll lead them in. Let's go!" I exclaimed. When we arrived I looked at my team.

"Quiet. Soft entry. The second he knows we're in there, she's dead. Let's go," I said thinking about her beautiful body, helpless.

Meanwhile, Doyle and Emily were fighting. He punched her and picked her back up and smashed her into the glass mirrors.

"Argh," Emily cried in pain. She stood up and kicked him. He fell. But he stood and kicked her in the stomach and as she doubled over, kicked her in the face.

"Ian, I'm never going to tell you where Declan is!" She screamed.

"Where IS HE?" He roared. He threw her to the ground. Then she jumped up and attacked him from behind. She threw him to the ground and punched and punched. He stood and she had him locked, he couldn't move.

"I've been stalling you! I now I've won!" She exclaimed. Then the lights went out. She didn't know, but this was Derek cutting the power. For that fraction of a moment, she got distracted, which was when Ian made his move. He pinned her to the ground and started punching her. She picked up a wooden stake and hit him with it. Then he grabbed her and stabbed her hard into the stomach.

"Ahh," She said gasping for air the stake still in her stomach.

"Where is he Emily?" He asked. Then he heard gun shots. The shots of Derek killing his partner. He ran. He ran and left Emily in the dark, dying, but not before whispering, "I will find him."

"Emily!" Derek exclaimed when he saw her on the ground. "HOTCH! WE NEED A MEDIC! C'MON!" He yelled into his walkie talkie.

"Emily, baby girl, stay with me. C'mon Emily! I want you to know I am SO proud to be your friend. And so proud that you're mine. I know what you did for Declan. We all love you," Derek said to her. Emily fought, but her eyes began to close.

"No! C'mon Emily! Stay with me!" He exclaimed, "Squeeze my hand if you hear me," He said desperate. She did.

"That's right. Squeeze. C'mon baby," Derek said, then yelled into his walkie talkie, "I NEED A MEDIC!"

"Hotch," JJ whispered to me. Her eyes were red from crying. We were all so worried. We were sitting outside the operating room in the hospital. Hoping and praying for Emily. Garcia was sniffling, Reid was trying to remain calm, Rossi was probably praying, and Derek was holding on to Garcia, his eyes also red.

I slowly made my way over to JJ and followed her into a different room.

"Hotch…she's…she's gonna be okay, but uh…she wants to be dead," JJ said trying to explain it correctly to me.

"You mean…fake it?" I asked.

"Yes. I'll take care of everything. I'll set her up with passports, bank accounts, ID's everything. She'll be okay…" JJ said,

'But," I began.

"Hotch you know if she 'survives', she'll just have to keep running," JJ mentioned. She was right.

"Can they say goodbye?" I asked.

"No…nobody can know she is alive, except us," JJ said.

"JJ," I began.

"Hotch. You know this is the truth," JJ told me.

"Yeah…well…you'll know where she is right?" I asked.

"Yes," She nodded.

"If I write her a letter…can you give it to her?" I asked.

"I will. Promise…and hum…we're gonna have a service," JJ said.

"Yes. Definitely. GOod..oh god, what are you going to tell them?" I asked.

"This," JJ said and walked out to the room. She was crying. It wasn't fake though. I knew it was really.

"Jayje?" Garcia asked quietly, looking up. I followed her out. I sighed.

"She never…she never made it off the table," JJ said, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"No!" Garcia said and burst into tears. Reid stood up and started to walk away.

'Spence?" JJ asked him.

"I never got to..say good bye," He said. He cried and JJ hugged him tightly. After a few minutes she took into a different room. There, sitting in a wheel chair, was Emily.

"Emily!" I exclaimed.

"Hotch," She said quietly. Tears were streaming down her face. JJ stood and watched us. I got really close to her and kneeled down next to her.

"Emily. This is a terrible time to tell you this…but…Emily I love you. I always have. I always will. Even…even when you're gone. I'll always think of you," I told her.

She leaned really close to me.

"This was the perfect time," She said, and kissed me. I tasted her warmth and her fear and her love.

"I love you too Hotch," Emily whispered holding my hands. A tear rolled down JJ's face.

"Hotch," She whispered.

"I know JJ," I said quietly.

"Goodbye, Emily," I said quietly.

"Good bye Hotch," Emily whispered to me. This was it. This was the end of the road for the romance that couldn't be.

"Here are three passports and bank accounts in Italy, Belgium and Spain," JJ said.

"Thank you…for everything," The woman whispered. Her honey colored hair was short around her shoulders. Everything was different. But the nails. The bit, picked at, nervous nails. They were the same. The scars. They were there, too. The love. The passion. The integrity. I knew in my heart that that would never leave her.

"Good luck," JJ wished the woman, her friend. She watched as former FBI agent Emily Prentiss walked into the distance, out of her life, forever. As soon as Emily was out of her sight, JJ picked up her phone and called me.

"It's done, Hotch," She whispered.

"Thank you JJ. For doing this," I said.

"Of course, anything to keep her safe…how is everyone doing?" JJ said.

"They're gone. All went home. They were all crying when I sent them home. Even Derek…i saw a tear," I said.

"Hotch…I have… I have to tell you something. The truth," JJ said.

"What is iit?" I asked worriedly.

" I can't stay," She said.

"Stay?" I asked nervously.

"At the BAU. I can't see their faces everyday…them not knowing…me having to lie to them. I can't. I'm sorry that I'm not as strong as you…because I know you'll be staying, for their sake, for her sake…but I just can't do it," JJ explained sadly.

"So…you're resigning?" I asked sadly.

"Well…I'd been offered a job…at the pentagon..I declined…twice because I couldn't leave them, but now…after this…and I"m pretty sure Strauss wants me to go anyway," JJ explained.

"What…what will you tell them?" I asked. JJ was gone because we couldn't save Emily in time.

"The truth…as much as I can, that is," JJ said.

"If you're sure this is what's best for you then I'm not going to stop you. It's a good job, being the liaison for the Pentagon. Better pay, better hours…" I said agreeing.

"But?" JJ asked knowing that that was where I was going.

"They lost Emily…will they be able handle losing you?" I asked.

"Well-" JJ began but I cut her off.

"However, this is a tough thing keeping this secret and so I'm not going to make this about them. This is absolutely about you…and your decision," I told her.

"Then I think I'm going to take this job, Hotch…I'm sorry," JJ said. Then she hung up before I could say another word. My team was falling apart and there wasn't much I could do to help them.


	10. Chapter 10

A/n: Here is the end. Enjoy!

I sat at my desk staring at a photograph from the year after Emily joined the BAU. Penelope on the far left, in a bright pink and orange ensemble smiling brightly with her arm around JJ's shoulder. JJ had a softer smile, her blue eyes shimmering and her blonde hair curly and fun. Will was behind her, kissing her on the head. JJ's arm was around Reid, who was standing awkwardly because he was loved by JJ but awkwardly enough, her husband was right there. Emily was next to Reid, her arm wrapped around him. Her bright red lips were spread into a huge smile. She must have been laughing at something I had said because she was laughing and looking at me. My arm was around her on my left and my wife on my right, who was also laughing and smiling at me. She was kissing me on the cheek. My heart sank as I looked at this photograph, because both the women I had loved had been taken from me.

There was a knock at my door.

"Come in," I said putting away the photo. It was Garcia.

"Hi, Garcia…what can I do for you?" I asked. She walked in, sat down, and started sobbing.

"Hotch she's gone. She's really gone. I remember how she made me smile and how we laughed and and and she's gone!" Garcia said sobbing. I immediately stood up and walked over to her. I opened my arms permitting a hug. She graciously accepted and hugged me tightly. When she was done, she pulled away.

"Sorry sir," She said sniffling.

"Don't be," I told her, "but uh…you may be in for a bigger shock."

"What? What happened? What's going on?" Garcia asked shocked. Then I saw JJ standing at my door, "Jayje? What's going on?"

"Nothing, Garcia. We have a case…head in there. We'll be right there," JJ told her.

"But is there something going on? Something wrong?" Garcia asked worried.

"No, Garcia, there isn't. Hotch was wrong. I promise," JJ said hugging Garcia tightly.

"You sure?" Garcia asked.

"Yes," JJ said firmly, "Now go," JJ said smiling. Garcia wiped her eyes and left Hotch's office. When she was gone, I shut my door and pointed JJ to the chair in front of my desk. She shook her head.

"JJ what the hell is going on?" I asked.

"I..had some time to think," JJ said.

"And?" I asked.

"I'm staying here. I can't leave you guys," JJ confessed.

"Thank god," I said sighing a sigh of relief.

"Huh?" JJ asked.

"I couldn't let you go…They need you, but even more, I need you. You keep my feet on the ground and my head on my shoulders. You take such good care of me. Whenever I need you or needed help with Jack you were right there. I don't know how to thank you enough and I couldn't let you," I admitted.

"Hotch," JJ said through tears. She walked over to me and hugged me tightly. I hugged her back.

"I lost Haley and I lost Emily. I couldn't lose you," I told her.

"We'll all get through this together," JJ said. We walked together into the conference room so JJ could brief us on the case. I sat down, looking at Emily's empty seat and I could just tell that she would be safe and happier not running…wherever she was. And I would always. Always. Love her.

**THE END! THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH FOR READING!**


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